Some of the strategies that Guardian recommends for employers to adapt to an increasingly digitized workplace include modernizing the workforce by reinventing the recruiting, hiring and training processes; closing existing skills gaps and building competencies in business technology, communication, writing and problem-solving; enabling the organization to anticipate and respond to on-demand talent needs, or to secure specific skills required to remain competitive in the evolving workplace; adapting workplace strategies for the millions of working Americans (many of them millennials) who embrace a new work paradigm and choose flexible or remote work arrangements and non-traditional career paths; and implementing a change management strategy that enables the organization — from top to bottom — to overcome barriers to success in a more automated and digital world.

Other study highlights include:

• Twice as many businesses expect total employment to increase (38%) in the next five years compared to those anticipating downsizing (16%). Jobs will continue to change and workers will be re-deployed and require skills in creativity, collaboration and communication.
• Millennials are more likely to embrace opportunities to acquire new skills, such as taking on a new role, cross-training, making a career change or returning to school. Gen Xers, who still have 10 to 25 years before retirement, are less likely to have taken steps to improve skills. One in five Baby Boomers would retire when faced with significant work/job changes.
• Nearly four in ten employers indicate that staffing (including recruiting, hiring and training) is a top business challenge for their organization.
• One in five U.S. companies expect an increase in their agile workforce in the coming five years as younger generations lean toward non-traditional employment arrangements, flexible schedules, part-time/contingent and non-permanent positions.